11 The Principal of Right Action
OUTLINE STAGE
This chapter contains rough notes and planning materials. Content development has not yet begun.
11.0.1 1. Opening (2 pages)
- State the premise: leadership isn’t just about execution; it’s about conscience.
- Frame the problem: executives live in gray.
- Make it clear: this isn’t a license to skirt the law — it’s about leading inside the gray zones.
11.0.2 2. Law: Binding but Not Sacred (2–3 pages)
- Laws are written by humans, flawed, sometimes bad.
- Anecdote: bad law removed via influence. Legitimate but unsettling.
- Point: follow the law absolutely while it exists — but don’t revere it. Change it if you can, reasonably and with conscience.
11.0.3 3. Regulation: Interpretation Rules (3–4 pages)
- Regulator’s interpretation is reality.
- Knowing “the regulator’s mind” requires investment: compliance staff, consultants, relationships.
- If company won’t invest, the exec must do it themselves.
- Lesson: leaders must insist on this investment (or do the work themselves) if scrutiny is likely.
11.0.4 4. Company Standards: Appetite for Risk (2–3 pages)
- Companies choose how close to the line they operate. Some upright, some shady, some scummy.
- As a leader, align with it or walk.
- Lesson: rationalizing misalignment corrodes integrity faster than leaving.
11.0.5 5. Personal Line: Your Conscience (2–3 pages)
- Your moral compass runs parallel to, but independent of, law/reg/company.
- Ideally stricter, never looser.
- Tested rarely, but decisively. When tested, you either spend capital or walk.
- Include “shadow side of influence” as the cautionary example: what’s legal may still feel wrong.
11.0.8 8. Closing Reflection (1 page)
- Reiterate: laws are not sacred, regulators interpret, companies choose, individuals decide.
- There are no “laws” here, only the practice of judgment in gray.
- Right action is less about perfect clarity and more about living with the story you choose to tell.